Increase in traffic at Moldova-Ukraine border as refugees return to Ukraine

One of the border guards at the Palanca border crossing in the south-east of the country, Alina, said some Ukrainian refugees had started to leave Moldova, one of Europe's poorest countries.

"We have of course lots of problems as the traffic increases, refugees start leaving as the situation is a little better in Ukraine and they want to go back home," she said.

One Ukrainian refugee returning home was Aliona from Odessa, which is about 60 kilometres to the east.

"I want to go home, I work there as a psychologist, I have clients who are ready and waiting to meet me. For me, this is very important and I want to be useful. My children also want to go home and their grandparents miss them and I also want to see my parents. We want peace, not war," she said before crossing the border in her car.

Odessa, normally an hour's drive from Palanca, is a picturesque Black Sea port that handles more than half of Ukraine's imports and exports, is seen as a major strategic and symbolic target for Russian forces.

With the war in its fourth week, Odessa is still unconquered.

More than 3.3 million refugees have already fled Ukraine through its western border since Russia invaded the country on February 24.